I wouldn't mind renting long-term if the place to me felt like a true home of my own. I'd be willing to shovel driveways and mow lawn and keep the place looking neat. I'd enjoy gardening and growing my own vegetables so keep that in mind when you think of this tenant.
I'd also want to use the garage though, for woodworking, welding and working on cars. I realize "no oil stains" is the big one here, I'd take care of that.
Welding is what I think would immediately scare people off. My IDEAL landlord would agree with me that I could run a 240V outlet to the garage (if there wasn't one already) and I'd be willing to pay the electrician bill here so no cost to the owner and is a slightly value added feature for them. I am actually an apprentice electrician by trade so I could obviously DIY but that is not good for the home owner so we'd do it right. But I am willing to use a 120V welder with less power to make use of the outlets that are already there.
The other is pets, ideally we'd own 2 dogs in addition to the 2 cats we already have.
Does welding and working on cars automatically make this tenant a "no-go"? That is the main thing holding me back on renting vs. owning, I'd like to own for the true feeling of freedom to do what I want in my own house/garage but renting is financially the better option for me. With the high cost of older 2bed apartments for very little value I find spending a few hundred dollars more in my target city for a townhouse with garage or detached house is what I'd ultimately like to do long term, and use the rent vs. own savings toward investments.